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Regarding the large amount of articles attesting to the phoniness of tripadvisor--I must say, there are about 20 more articles that I have read in the last few months...TravelMole has a few. TA is a runaway train, and one wonders where is the accountability. One only has to read the "Owner's forum" to see the terrible things that have happened to hardworking business owners.

I'm quite sure TA was started with very good intentions but probably grew too fast with inexperienced people at the helm. It works both ways. Businesses give perks and intimidate people to write a 5 star review, and then again, there is the other side that this article alludes to. It's a nice thing to read, but I would not put all my eggs in the TA basket. TA has no set of rules (even though they say differently) and apparently if a business is aggressive enough or is paying for advertisement, they are on the winning side. I know for a fact that these things happen, I have proof. My advice to all is, read with a grain of salt, and realize that more than half of the reviews are downright phony and at best, manipulated for other motives. If you really want to souse out true information, write to the poster and ask more questions, you will at least have an idea if that review was perked or if the review was sincere. Write to various posters. Also read travel guide books for more information. I predict we will see more TA-like sites, that are smaller and more sincere in the future.

This thread is not about your personal budget nor galapagos yachts. Please start your own thread alluding to your particular subject matter, and respect the subject title of this specific thread. If you have nothing to contribute regarding this subject, start your own or refrain from posting here.

These sorts of things are unavoidable in a forum or Tripadvisor's size and influence. The question for anyone engaging honestly with the site is whether the benefits of collecting anonymous and sometimes useful information that would be otherwise difficult to find outweigh the costs of the inevitable corruption and dishonesty that will also occur. I think that so long as people are cautious, skeptical, and corroborate important information with other sources, the benefits of tripadvisor outweigh the costs...

Wholeheartedly agree, TDubb. It takes a certain amount of critical reading skills to filter the wheat from the chaff. Some complaints are frivolous, like "the beach had brown sand, not white, and the resort should have mentioned that in their brochure" (!).

One of my strategies is to look at a person's posting record, particularly the "one-post wonders" who join TA, post either an outrageously glowing review or an outrageously negative one, then never participate again. It takes time and participation to build up a reputable track record. A person who posts frequently with the same spiel every time without really answering the OP also gets a miss from me.

Yes, good info, looking at the posters history. Also the 'one post wonders'--so true. What about businesses that have a computer right there in the entrance, and intimidate guests into writing a review right now? Shouldn't reviews be written once a tourist has returned home? I think so, so as not to get 'shot-gun' reviews or perk-enticed reviews. These articles are speaking about people that are holding hostage the businesses, another reason to accept reviews written after a period of time, possibly may cut down on this. Guests can be spoiled if they don't get their way nowadays.